The Sandiganbayan has denied Senator Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada’s motion for reconsideration seeking the dismissal of the graft charges filed against him in connection with the multibillion-peso Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) or “pork barrel” scam.
In a 22-page resolution dated October 1, 2025, the anti-graft court’s Special Fifth Division junked Estrada’s plea “for lack of merit.”
"After a careful perusal of the arguments raised by accused Estrada in his motion for reconsideration, the Court finds no cogent reason to disturb its findings in the assailed resolution denying his demurrer to evidence," the ruling penned by Associate Justice Zaldy Trespeses stated.
The ruling was concurred with by Associate Justices Maryann Corpus-Manalac and Maria Theresa Mendoza-Arcega.
Estrada is facing 11 counts of graft for allegedly funneling around ₱183 million of his PDAF allocations to fake non-government organizations (NGOs) controlled by convicted businesswoman Janet Lim-Napoles.
The NGOs were supposedly used as conduits for ghost livelihood projects, resulting in the misuse of public funds.
The senator had argued that the graft charges should be dismissed, claiming that the prosecution "not only failed to prove the scienter element but also failed to show that he actually caused the award of the PDAF projects."
He also insisted that the cases stemmed from the same evidence, witnesses, and transactions already used in the separate plunder case filed against him. The Sandiganbayan, however, rejected these claims, emphasizing that the prosecution had presented sufficient evidence to proceed with the trial.
"Accused Estrada’s insistence on the innocuousness of his endorsements is belied by his repetition and deviation from the established procedure. Estrada’s endorsement letters directly implicate him for the crimes charged and there is no basis for his argument that his letters were merely recommendatory," the resolution stated.
Meanwhile, Estrada, through his counsel, was granted "a period of five days from receipt of this resolution within which to file a manifestation whether he desires to cross-examine their witnesses or adopt their testimony and/or evidence."
Estrada, along with former senators Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr. and Juan Ponce Enrile—now serving as Chief Presidential Legal Counsel under President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.—was among the high-profile lawmakers indicted in the pork barrel scam.
Revilla was acquitted of plunder in 2018 but continues to face graft charges, while Enrile’s plunder case was dismissed in 2021 due to lack of evidence.
The pork barrel scam, which came to light in 2013, remains one of the country’s biggest corruption scandals, involving billions of pesos in lawmakers’ discretionary funds allegedly diverted to Napoles-linked NGOs.
With the denial of Estrada’s motion, the graft proceedings against him will continue.
Estrada and Revilla have recently been implicated in the alleged kickback scheme tied to anomalous flood control projects.
